How severe is CVE-2017-12542?

CVE-2017-12542 has a CVSS score of 10/10, rated CRITICAL. Immediate patching is strongly recommended.

Which products are affected by CVE-2017-12542?

CVE-2017-12542 affects the following products: hp integrated lights-out 4 firmware.

How do I patch CVE-2017-12542?

Apply the hp integrated lights-out 4 firmware security patch or hotfix for CVE-2017-12542 on the affected version, following the vendor advisory for your exact build.

How do I detect CVE-2017-12542 across my infrastructure?

Inventory every hp integrated lights-out 4 firmware deployment and check each version against the affected-products list above.

How do I mitigate CVE-2017-12542 if there is no patch (or I can't update yet)?

Put an independent control in front of the weakness: restrict the affected endpoint or interface to trusted networks, require an additional authentication factor or proxy-level check, and invalidate existing sessions and credentials in case the flaw has already been used. Alongside that, restrict the management interface to trusted networks and apply the vendor's recommended configuration mitigations.

Is CVE-2017-12542 actively exploited in the wild?

Yes. There are 11 known exploit references for CVE-2017-12542, including 1 documented proof-of-concept exploit on Exploit-DB and 7 in-the-wild exploitations observed on GitHub and other sources. Treat this as actively exploitable and prioritize patching immediately. All exploit code should only be run in an isolated sandbox environment for research or authorized testing — never against production systems without explicit written authorization.

What is the EPSS score for CVE-2017-12542?

CVE-2017-12542 has an EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) score of 99.3%, placing it in the 100th percentile of all CVEs. EPSS is maintained by FIRST.org and estimates the probability that a vulnerability will be exploited in the wild within the next 30 days. A score above 50% indicates significantly elevated exploitation risk — immediate patching is strongly recommended.

Which products and versions are affected by CVE-2017-12542?

CVE-2017-12542 affects hp integrated lights-out 4 firmware. Check the affected-products list on this page against your deployed version to confirm exposure.

Is there exploit tooling available for CVE-2017-12542?

A Nuclei detection template exists for CVE-2017-12542, meaning automated scanners can fingerprint it. Public exploit tooling significantly increases real-world risk — prioritize patching and ensure detection coverage. Exploit tooling should only ever be used in isolated, authorized testing environments.

When was CVE-2017-12542 published, and has it been updated?

CVE-2017-12542 was published on February 15, 2018 and was last updated on June 17, 2026. Advisory data evolves as severity scores, affected ranges, and exploit intelligence are revised — always check the latest version of the advisory before acting.

🛡️

Not in CISA KEV

CRITICAL severity

CVE-2017-12542 — Integrated Lights-Out 4 Firmware

CRITICAL

CVE-2017-12542 is a critical-severity (CVSS 10) vulnerability in hp integrated lights-out 4 firmware. 11 public exploit references exist, so weaponization risk is real. A fix is available — see the affected versions and patch details below.

A authentication bypass and execution of code vulnerability in HPE Integrated Lights-out 4 (iLO 4) version prior to 2.53 was found.

Published

Feb 15, 2018

Updated

Jun 17, 2026

Affected

1 product

Patched

See advisory

Exploits

11 known

Exploitation data as of Oct 23, 2026 · OSV.dev, NVD, FIRST.org (EPSS)

EPSS Exploitation Probability

via FIRST.org ↗

99.3%probability of exploitation in next 30 days

Very High Risk0.00%

Lower risk than most CVEs100th percentile — riskier than 100% of all scored CVEsHighest risk

Probability of exploitation in the next 30 days, from FIRST.org EPSS.

How urgent is this, really

CVE-2017-12542 by exploitation likelihood (EPSS) against impact (CVSS). In the shaded patch-first corner (EPSS 50%+, CVSS 7.0+).

Where this sits among everything scored

Of 394,803 CVEs with a current EPSS score, this one falls in the ≥ 90% band (highlighted). Counts from FIRST.org, log-scaled.

Description

A authentication bypass and execution of code vulnerability in HPE Integrated Lights-out 4 (iLO 4) version prior to 2.53 was found.

Affected Products

1 product · 1 configurations

integrated lights-out 4 firmwarehp

< 2.53

range

Exploits & PoCs

Research use only. For defensive security, authorized penetration testing, and academic research only. Never execute exploit code against systems without explicit written authorization.

EDB-44005remotemultiple

HPE iLO 4 < 2.53 - Add New Administrator User

by skelsec · Feb 5, 2018

Exploit-DB Source

Detection & mitigation playbook

Vendor / appliance

Detect
Inventory every hp integrated lights-out 4 firmware deployment and check each version against the affected-products list above.
Fix
Apply the hp integrated lights-out 4 firmware security patch or hotfix for CVE-2017-12542 on the affected version, following the vendor advisory for your exact build.
Workarounds
Put an independent control in front of the weakness: restrict the affected endpoint or interface to trusted networks, require an additional authentication factor or proxy-level check, and invalidate existing sessions and credentials in case the flaw has already been used. Alongside that, restrict the management interface to trusted networks and apply the vendor's recommended configuration mitigations.

How to detect CVE-2017-12542

A community-maintained Nuclei template exists for this CVE. You can scan for it directly:

nuclei -id cve-2017-12542 -u https://target

Template: HPE Integrated Lights-out 4 (ILO4) <2.53 - Authentication Bypass
Severity: critical
Impact: Successful exploitation of this vulnerability allows an attacker to bypass authentication and gain unauthorized access to the affected system.
Remediation: Upgrade HPE Integrated Lights-out 4 (ILO4) to version 2.53 or later to mitigate this vulnerability.

Template by ProjectDiscovery nuclei-templates (pikpikcu), MIT licensed. View the full template. Scan only systems you are authorised to test.

Frequently Asked Questions

A authentication bypass and execution of code vulnerability in HPE Integrated Lights-out 4 (iLO 4) version prior to 2.53 was found.

O3 Security · Runtime Protection

Is CVE-2017-12542 being exploited in your environment?

Detect and block the exploit chain at execution, on systems you cannot patch yet.

Protect my workloads How runtime protection works

CVE-2017-12542 — Integrated Lights-Out 4 Firmware

EPSS Exploitation Probability

How urgent is this, really

Where this sits among everything scored

Description

Affected Products

Detection & mitigation playbook

Detect

Fix

Workarounds

How to detect CVE-2017-12542

Frequently Asked Questions

Is CVE-2017-12542 being exploited in your environment?